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You’ve heard of Opioids and have a vague (or potentially detailed) understanding of the problems they cause both in the UK and further afield in prominent places like the US. We all assume that the only way to cope with pain post-surgery is through regulated pain-killers, both common, over-the-counter drugs (ie. paracetamol) or less accessible drugs in the medical setting (ie. morphine). While pain-killers are great at relieving patients from pain and discomfort, many don’t realise that there are alternate methods for managing moderate pain. In this article, we will outline a quick-stop overview of Opioids and outline how PHYSIOLAB can assist as a natural alternative.


What are Opioids?


Opioids are given to patients following surgery, in order to help them cope with any pain they have following their procedure. The word Opioid is most commonly associated with strong pain relief medication, such as Codeine and Morphine. Despite being widely used, these drugs are in the same class of drug as heroin and are deemed very addictive when used for long periods of time or if misused.


PHYSIOLAB as a non-medicated alternative


PHYSIOLAB® met with Professor Paul Lee (orthopaedic surgeon) to discuss the impact that Opioids have on patient recovery, as well as his experiences of using PHYSIOLAB® S1 as a viable alternative for pain management. He explained how Opioids can cause the patient to feel unwell. This results in them being unable to do the exercises given to them for rehabilitation, prolonging their recovery time.

Professor Lee found that when using the S1 it anecdotally reduced his patients’ pain and swelling by around 50 to 80%, proving it to be a favourable alternative to unnatural treatment alternatives. One patient in particular went a whole night in hospital using only the S1 to manage their pain. Upon realising he was able to manage without medication, he consequently stopped using it for the remainder of his time as an inpatient. Professor Lee explained how utilising Physiolab more frequently, and limiting pain relief medication, means that the patient is benefitted (they are able to recover quicker), the hospital staff (they do not need to dispense drugs as regularly) and the hospital’s overall clinical outcomes (physiotherapists see a vast improvement in their patients). Overall, the patient would be discharged faster, benefitting all parties previously stated and reducing AVLOS (Average Length Of Stay).


Watch our case study video with Professor Lee


In the below video, Professor Lee and a recent High Tibial Osteotomy (HTO) patient talk us through the benefits of utilising PHYSIOLAB in the post-surgical inpatient setting. He estimated that typically for a double HTO surgery, it  would take the patient 6-8 weeks before they could walk again. However, in this specific case study the patient was able to walk after just 3 weeks. Both Prof Lee and his patient credit this to the use of the Physiolab, with the patient being able to conduct his physiotherapy exercises due to the swelling reduction and minimal pain-med consumption.



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